When do they get 'fuzzy'?

[skiba]

I'm new to BC's and I was wondering if it takes them a few years to get the longer fur or if it's fully grown in at a year? My 11 month old has really long (2-3 in) 'butt fuzz', feathering, tail, and mane and the rest is short (1 in or less). I'm just curious if he'll get more fuzz or stay the same.

[desertranger]

You may get some more, adults coats are usually full in by 18 months. However be awayr you may have a relatively short haired dog. Jin's coat is very smooth about 2-3" in layers. Here's Jin at 14 mos or so.

 

 

 

 

 

[skiba]

Thank you. Oliver's coat is rough along his spine and soft on the sides, no idea what to expect.

 

I'll post a picture of him now as soon as I get my camera working.

[Alchemist]

Here's Duncan at just under three months (still total puppy fuzz, incredibly soft):

 

Here he is again at four months. His outer coat is just starting to grow past the puppy fuzz. You can see that it's growing in a bit darker, with a bit of a gentle "swirl", right along his spine:

 

Almost two months later (at nearly six months of age) he's clearly rough-coated. By this point many people were mistaking him for an adult dog. He'd been doing a lot of wading when this particular photo was taken, so he was fluffier than normal. I thought he'd keep those "airplane ears" forever, but within a month he'd lost them:

 

Finally, here he is this spring at 15 months:

 

At this point, when he's sopping wet, he looks to have half the girth he has when he's dry, and he's still all ears and legs when his coat is plastered to his body. He's still actually very thin underneath all that coat, believe it or not. I'll have to try to document that if I can keep him from shaking long enough.

[Sue R]

I'd call both Jin and Duncan medium-rough coats, longer hair than a smooth and not so dense. I like to think of them as "silky" coats, the same sort of coats that Celt and Megan have (and Bute had). Not a lot of undercoat even in winter, but nice feathers.

 

Lovely dogs, all!

[Rebecca, Irena Farm]

Sam went through a minimal coat period between six and eleven months too. At this point there isn't much doubt he's going to have a pretty bushy coat when he's fully mature.

 

Edited to note that the pic of Sam in my siggy is obviously kinda old!

[Liz P]

Well, that explains why he so handsome. Who are his parents again? Tweed and Bess?

[Rebecca, Irena Farm]

Sam is Fieldstone Tweed and Bess, yup! Sam's working style follows Bess mostly, very stylish. He's got a cool thinking, practical head on his shoulders that strikes me as more like his grandsire Rook, and he's the most giving dog I've ever had the pleasure of owning.

[PSmitty]

^^Hi, stranger!

[desertranger]

I like Jin's coat. Just right I had a rough coat that was absolutely the most fur I've ever seen on a BC.

[Liz P]

Sam is Fieldstone Tweed and Bess, yup! Sam's working style follows Bess mostly, very stylish. He's got a cool thinking, practical head on his shoulders that strikes me as more like his grandsire Rook, and he's the most giving dog I've ever had the pleasure of owning.

 

Ah, so my pup Juniper is related then. Juniper's dam is a half sister to Tweed and is sired by a half brother to Bess. I am really enjoying working her and watching her learn and grow as a sheepdog.

 

 

 

[skiba]

Finally got a decent-ish picture of my pooch :]

 

He's like the perfect mix of short and long coat, but he sheds like a beast!